Electric safety appliance for railway-trains.



No. 789,221. PATENTED MAY 9, 1905. J. A. LARKIN.

ELECTRIC SAFETY APPLIANCE FOR RAILWAY TRAINS.

APPLICATION FILED NOV. 12, 1903.

5 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

PATENTED MAY 9, 1905.

J. A. LARKIN. ELECTRIC SAFETY APPLIANCE FOR RAILWAY TRAINS.

APPLICATION FILED NOV. 12, 1903.

6 SHEETS-SHEET Z. f

No. 789,221. PATENTED MAY 9, 1905. J. A. LARKIN.

ELECTRIC SAFETY APPLIANCE FOR RAILWAY TRAINS. APPLICATION FILED NOV. 12, 1903.

5 SH-EETSSIHBET 3.

No. 789,221. PATENTED MAY 9, 1905.

J. A. LARKIN.

ELECTRIC SAFETY APPLIANCE FOR RAILWAY TRAINS.

APPLICATION FILED NOV. 12, 1903.

6 SHEETS-SHEET 5.

UNTTED STATES PATENT Patented May 9, 1905.

FF ICE.

ELECTRIC SAFETY APPLIANCE FOR RAILWAY-TRAINS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 789,221, dated May 9, 1905.

Application filed November 12, 1903. Serial No. 180,834-

To all whom, it may concern:

Be it known that I, J OHN A. LARKIN, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Glenridge, in the county of Essex and State of New Jersey, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Electric Safety Appliances for Railway-Trains, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to improvements in electric safety appliances for railroads and railway-trains.

The object is to provide means for soundin g alarm to the engineer of a train when there is another train coming or going on the same track ahead or there is a train ahead stalled and also for automatically stopping the locomotive-engines and for throwing on the train air-brakes. These objects are attained in the manner and by the means hereinafter described and claimed, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is an ordinary locomotive having my appliances fitted thereto. Fig. 2 is a plan view of an ordinary railroad-track crossed by another railway and showing that part of my invention which is connected with or attached to the road-bed. Fig. 3 is an end View of the track shown in Fig. 2. Figs. 4, 5, 6, and 7 are different views of the mechanisms or details thereof attached to the locomotive. Figs. 8, 9, 10, and 11 are views of the mechanism attached to the track at different points for forming an electrical connection between the rails, so as to stop a coming train from the track. Figs. 12 and 13 are plan views of a railroad, double track in each case, showing the adaptation of my invention to such a railroad when equipped with block-stations and without crossing of other railroads. In Fig. 12 is shown the mechanism for stopping the train when going in one direction only to prevent collision with the rear end of preceding trains or with stalled trains or obstructions ahead. In Fig. 13 is shown the arrangement to prevent head-on collisions by stopping both trains or trains going in either direction. Figs. 14, 15, and 16 show a modification in construction of the mechanism attached to the locomotive, and Figs. 17, 18, and 19 show a modification in construction of the valve shown in Figs. 5

and 6, whereby steam is used from the boiler instead of compressed air from the air-brake system for purpose of operating the mechanism. Fig. 20 is an end view of the speed-regulating fans attached to the escape-lever in Fig. 1 1.

Similar reference-marks refer to similar parts throughout the several drawings.

In Figs. 2, 12, and 13 the numerals 1 1, 2 2, 3 3, and so on up to 19 and 19, refer to sections of the rails in a railroad-track fitted with the so-called block system, the different numerals referring to the different pieces of the track included in the respective blocks a b 0 (Z, &c., up to s. For example, 1 and 1 refer to the rails in the whole length of the track in block a, and 2 and 2 to the rails of the whole length of the track in block b, and so on up to 19 and 19 in block .9.

At 20 and 20 1 show electric conductors, and at 21 and 21and 22 and 22 are different terminals of said conductors, such conductors and terminals being properly insulated from each other and from the road-bed, the terminals being in form of contact plates or rails arranged at different points all along the road-bed the full length of the track in the different blocks. 21 and 21 in Fig. 13 are arranged to connect electrically, through the conductors 20, with the rails or track of the block ahead in one direction, and theplates or rails 22 and 22 are arranged to connect electrically, through the conductors 20, with the rails or track of the block ahead in the other direction.

At 23 and 23 I show the ends of the rails of the track in one block insulated from the ends of the rails of the track in each other block next thereto. Each rail is electrically connected together by an electric conductor in the whole length of each block, so that all of the rails together in a single block, such as 3 in block 0,-Fig. 2, form a part of the conductor in an open electrical circuit, the other part, or 3, in said block 0 forming the other part of the circuit, the different contact plates or rails 21 and 21 in and along'the full length of the track in block a and beginning of block .7) being the terminals of such open circuit, and the full length of the rail 8 in block 1,

The contact plates or rails.

Fig. 12, forms a part of the conductor in another open circuit, the other part being formed by the full length of rail 8 in said block 1, the different contact-plates or numerous short rails 21 and 21 in and along the full length of the track in block 1?. and beginning of block m being the terminals of such open circuit.

In Figs. 1 and 3 at 33 and 33 show attached to the locomotive electric terminals to the conductors 34 and 34 ofan open electric circuit on said locomotive, such terminals being in form of slides, brushes, or trolleys 33 and 33, located underneath or on the lower side of the locomotive and arranged or fixed so as to form electric contact with the contact-plates or numerous short rails 21 and 21 and 22 and 22, fixed to but insulated from the road-bed in and along the track of the different blocks of the railroad as the said locomotive passes over the track in the different blocks.

At 35 I show a box or case attached to the locomotive, preferably inside the engineers cab, which contains the automatic mechanism for giving the alarm and stopping the train in case of any obstruction on the track in the difi'erent blocks ahead, which mechanism is shown in detail in Figs. 4, 5, 6, and 7. This mechanism consists, preferably, of a springactuated balanced rotary valve 36, (shown in Figs. 5 and 6,) which is connected with the compressed-air reservoir of the air-brake system or the supply-pipe which supplies said air-brake system with-compressed air through the feed-pipe 37, its normal position being closed, as shown in 5 and 6. The outlet from this rotary balanced valve 36 is the pipe 38, Figs. 5, 6, and 7, which delivers through pipe 39 to an ordinary steam-whistle 40 and also through pipe41 to asmall air-cylinder 42, fitted with a piston 43, which actuates the independent throttle-valve 44 in the steamsupply pipe from the boiler to the locomotive-engines through the lever 45 and the connecting-rod 45. The throttle-valve used by the engineer in running the locomotive is shown at 44. The normal position of the piston 43 is at the limit of its instroke, as shown in Fig. 7, when the throttle-valve 44 is wide open, which also is its normal position.

At 46 I have a lever attached to the valve 36, and to the outer end of this lever (see Fig. 4) I attach one end 01 a coil-spring 47, the lower end of same being fixed to the case 35, as shown. To the lever 46 is attached the gear 48, which actuates gear 49, which engages gear 50, to which is attached the arm 51.

At 52 (see Fig. 5) I have an ordinary electromagnet having an armature 53, which is pivoted at 54 and having a projecting lever 55, which is arranged to pass under the arm 51, as shown in Fig. 4, when the armature is away from the poles of the magnet 52, as shown in Fig. 5, and to thus prevent the arm 51 from passing downwardly, which movement of the arm 51 would cause or allow the spring 47 to quickly open the valve 36. In this position, as shown in Fig. 4, the valve 36 is closed or in its normal position and the spring 47 is at its greatest tension. The valve 36 (see Fig. 6) has two inlet-ports 56 and 56, which open from the feed-pipe 37 to ahollow chamber 57, and i; has one outlet-port 58, which opens to the oulet or discharge pipe 38. The armature 53 is held in its normal position away from the poles of the electromagnet 52 by the light-tension coil-spring 59 and is prevented from being pulled loo far away from the poles by the shoulder 60 on the projecting lever 51.

At 61 I show an ordinary electric battery or other source of electric current in the open circuit comprising the conductors 34 and 34, so that whenever the circuit is closed and the electromagnet 52 is energized the armature 53 is forced into contact with the poles of the electromagnet 52 against the spring 59, and

the lever 55 being moved from the arm 51 the spring 47 acts on the lever 46, and the valve 36 is rotated until the lug 60 on the arm 51 engages the lever 55, at which point the ports 56 and 56 and 58 are wide open to the inlet 37 and outlet 38, respectively, so that the compressed air is released from the airbrake system and the reduction of pressure therein sets the air-brakes, and simultaneously the compressed air passing to the whistle 40 (see Fig. 7) gives the alarm, and also passing to the cylinder 42 the pressure forces out the piston 43, which closes the steam throttlevalve 44, thus shutting oii steam to the engines.

At 24 in Fig. 12 I represent a train in block It) moving in the direction of the arrow, and at 25 in the blocks ahead at Z and m is shown an obstruction or stalled train. This stalled train 25 forms an electrical connection between the rails and in the block, so that the conductors 20 and the wheels and axle of the obstructing-train 25 form an open circuit, the contact-plates 21 and 21 in the preceding blocks Zr and Z forming the terminals of such open circuit, and the locomotive of the train 24 I as it passes over the contact-plates 21 and 21 in the preceding block at 70 through the brushes or trolleys 33 and 33 on the locomotive, closes the circuit comprised in the conductors 34 and 34 on the locomotive through the battery 61 and the electromagnet 52 becomes energized, and the armature 53 being forced to the poles of the electromagnet the arm 51 is released and the valve 36 is opened and the train immediately and automatically stopped.

In case there is 1.0 obstruction in the blocks Z and m then there will be no electrical connection between tracks 12 and 12 in theblock m, and consequently as the locomotive passes over the preceding blc ck the brushes or trolleys 33 and 33 as they come in contact with the contact-plates 21 and 21 do not close the circuit and the armature 53 remains in the position shown in Fig. away from the poles of the electromagnet 52, and therefore the spring-actuated valve 36 remains closed.

In Fig. 13 is shown on the double track of the blocks 19. q, 7', and s a double set of contact-plates 21 and 21 and 22 and 22 and a double set of conductors 20 and 20, so as to close the circuit on the locomotive in case of danger of head-on collision or of trains going toward each other on the same track.

In Figs. 8, 9, 10, and 11 is shown a mechanism for forming an electrical connection between the tracks by the hand-lever 63. In Fig. the contact-plates 64 and 64 (shown in Fig. 8) are in contact with the rails which form an electrical connection through the rod 65 (see Fig. 8) between the rails. In Fig. 11 the circuit is shown broken.

In Figs. 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, and I show a modification in construction of the mechanism on thelocomotive for giving the signal of danger and for setting the air-brakes and shutting off the steam to the locomotive-engines. In this construction I make use of the steam-pressure in the locomotive-boiler for operating the mechanism instead of the compressed air from the air-brake reservoir.

To the gear-wheel 50 I attach the escapewheel 50, which engages the escape-lever 7 O, which is pivoted at 71 and has two arms 72 and 7 2, to which is attached the fans 73 and 7 3. (See Figs. 14 and 20.) This escape-lever 70 is held in place so as to engage the escapewheel 50 by the coil-spring 74, Fig. 20. By pushing it against the spring 74 the escapelever 7 O is disengaged from the escape-wheel 50 and the wheel 51 turned back and reset in the position shown in Fig. 14.

In Figs. 15, 17, 18, and-19 is shown the valve 36', which operates this construction. It has atransverse port 7 5, with the branch port 76 leading therefrom, and the balance-port 77. The steam is admitted through the port 78, which is connected by the pipe 79 with the boiler. This valve 36 is inclosed in the casing 67, which has an elongated port 80, which connects with the pipe 39,1eading to the whistle 40. (See Fig. 17.) At 81 is also a port which is connected with the pipe 41, Figs. 16, 17, 18, and 19, which pipe opens to the little cylinder 42 below the piston 43. This piston by means of the connecting-rod 45 and the lever 82 and rock-shaft 45 is made to open the valve 83 in the pipe84, which connects with the air-brake reservoir, and close the throttle 44 in'the steampipe which supplies the steam to the locomotive-engines. 'VVithin the cylinder 42 or 42 I have the helical spring 69, which acts against when the mechanism is set for operation and Valve 36 or 36 is in the position shown in Figs. 6 or 17. In this modified construction by use of the escape-wheel 50 and the escape-lever and the elongated port it will be noticed the whistle 40 will first give the alarm and it will blow for a time constantly before the airbrakes are set, thus giving the engineer warning and the chance for him to shut off steam and put on the brakes by hand, if there is danger, or to shut off the steam to the valve 36 by closing the throttle 68 in the supplypipe 79 if he finds there is no danger of a collision, so that the train may continue on its way without being disturbed.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and original, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

In electric safety mechanism for preventing collision of trains on railroads, the combination with a railway road-bed and tracks; of a locomotive having an open electric circuit, including therein a source of electricity and an electromagnet having an armature, the terminals of said circuit consisting of brushes or trolleys attached to the lower part of said locomotive; electric conductors along the rails of the track in one section or block of said railway road-bed and connected with contactplates in said block or section, the other end of said conductors being connected with the corresponding rails of the next section or block of said road bed; electric conductors connecting the ends of the rails together on each side in one section or block, and insulations between each block which insulate the rails of one block from those of another; a spring-actuated valve, normally closed, and connected with the air-brake system of the train attached to said locomotive; means for opening said valve by the action of the armature aforesaid when said circuit is closed and said magnet is thereby made electromagnetic,

and means for simultaneously giving an alarm- October, A. D. 1903.

JOHN A. LARKIN.

Witnesses:

J. F. PLACE, ARTHUR RUssELL. 

